Fence-post.



GEORGE H. WARD, OF LORAINE, ILLINOIS.

FENCE-POST.

' Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 2, 1908.

Application filed December 9, 1907. Serial No. 405,812.

To all whom it may concern:

- Be it known that I, GEORGE H. WVARD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Loraine, in the county of Adams, State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fence-Posts; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The present invention has reference to fence posts, and it aims, generally, to provide an exceedingly simple, inexpensive, and efficient article of that class which, by reason of its particular construction, is virtually proof against injury from the weather, or from fire, and, when set into the ground, will be held securely against accidental displacement of any kind.

To this end the post comprises a hollow metal casing having its front face open and its opposite ends closed, a wooden core orfilling disposed within the interior of the easing, and a cover bolted to the latter and to the core and disposed directly against the outer face of the core across which the fence wires are strung, thus preventing displacement of the staples by which the wires are secured to the core.

A further improvement contemplated by the invention resides in the formation of transverse channels in the inner face of the cover, into Which channels the fence wires and the staples are adapted to extend, to permit the cover to fit flush against the edges of the casing and the outer face of the core.

- A still .further improvement consists in-the provision of an attaching base of frusto-pyramidal sha e, which is formed integral with the casing, t e smaller end of said base being disposed adjacent the bottom of the casing, thus preventing accidental displacement of the post when set into the. ground.

The invention still further resides in the formation upon the side faces of the casing of li s to which the ends of the diagonal meta braces are secured.

The invention will be readily understood from a consideration of the following detailed description, and its preferred embodiment is illustrated in the accom anying drawings in which similar parts or eatures,

as the case may be, are deslgnated by corresponding reference numerals in the several views.

Of the said drawings Figure 1 is a perspective view of the post, showing the cover detached from the casing. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the post. Fig. 3 is an enlarged transverse section taken on the line 33 of Fig. 2. Fig. .4 is a front elevation of a fence, showing the fence wires, and the braces connected to the post ears. Fig. 5 is a plan view of Fig. 4.

Referring to the drawings, and more partic'ularly to Figs. 1, 2, and 3 thereof, 7 designates the hollow tapered casing or shell of the post, 8 the wooden core, and 9 the cover. The casing, which is formed of cast iron, has its entire front face open, as shown, the top of the casing projecting slightly forwards, as indicated by the numeral 10 to form an overhanging lip.

The core, which fits exactly within the. interior of the casing, has its front face approximately flush with the front edges of the'cas ing, and, as above stated, is formed of wood, so as to permit the staples or other fastening devices 11 for the fence wires 12 to be readily driven thereinto, the fence itself consisting preferably of a series of barbed wires 12 secured to the upper portion of the core, and a strip of wire netting 13 secured to the lower portion thereof, both the wires and the wire netting being disposed directly against the outer face of the core.

The bottom edge of the casing is likewise projected forwardly, as indicated by the numeral 14 to provide a second lip upon which the lower end of the cover 9 rests, the curved upper end of which fits against the concave under face of the lip 10, the width of the cover being such that its side edges lie flush with the side faces of the casing. The cover, like the casing, is formed of cast iron, and is secured to the latter by a seriesof bolts 15 which pass through registering openings formed in the cover, the core, and the back of the casing, as shown in Fig. 3.

By reason of the particular disposition of the cover above referred to, it will be apparent that the entire outer face of the core will be completely protected against exposure to the weather, thus prolonging the life of the core to an exceedingly great extent, all danger of injury to the core from fire being likewise obviated by such disposition. In order to permit the cover to fit flush against the outer face of the core, the inner face of the cover has formed therein an upper series of transverse channels 16 into which the barbed wires 12 project, and a lower series of intersecting channels 17 which receive the intersecting strands of wire netting, the disposition of the wires within said channels further preventing any displacement thereof with respect to the post as a whole.

The bottom of the casing has cast thereon a frusto-pyramidal attaching base 18 whose smaller end is disposed uppermost, so as to provide a space between the slanting sides of said base and the bottom of the easing, into which space the earth is tamped when the base is embedded in the ground, so as to prevent accidental displacement of the post when the ground freezes and subsequently thaws.-

In Figs. 4 and- 5 which show one corner of a fence whose wires are secured to posts constructed as above described, the casing of the central or corner post is provided upon its opposite side faces with a pair of depending lips- 19 which are socketedfor the reception of the upper ends of the diagonal strengthening braces 20 whose lower ends fit in the sockets formed in similar lips 21 with which the posts adjacent the. corner post are provided. These lips are preferably cast separately from the casing and are bolted or otherwise attached thereto, thus rendering the casting of special corner posts unnecessary. These lips, however, are not designed exclusively for the particular form of posts above .described, since they may be attached with equal facility to any ordinary type of post now 1n use.

What is claimed is 2- 1. A fence-post comprising, in combination, a hollow metal casing having its front face open, a non-metallic core fitted within the interior of the casing and exposed through.

the open face thereof, fence-wire fasteners secured to the exposed face of the core, and a metal plate secured to the casing and core, to cover the exposed face of the latter:

2. A fence-post comprising, in combination, a hollow metal casing having its front face-open, a non-metallic core fitted within the interior of the casing and exposed through the open face thereof, fence-wire fasteners secured to the exposed face of'the core, a metal cover disposed directly. against the exposed face of the core and the adjacent .edges of the casing, said casing, core, and cover being provided with registering openings,

and bolts fitted in said openings to fasten the core, casing, and cover together.

3. A fence-post comprising, in combination, a hollow metal casing having its entire front face open and provided at the top and bottom of said face with forwardly-projecting lips, a non-metallic core fitted within the interiorof the casing and exposed through the open face thereof, fence-wire fasteners secured to the exposed face of the core, and a metal cover plate disposed directly against said face and secured to the core and easing, the o posite ends of said plate fitting against said ips.

4. A fence-post comprising, in combination, a hollow metal casing, having its front face open, a non-metallic core fitted within the interior of the casing and exposed through the open face thereof, fence-wire fasteners secured to the exposed face of the core, and a metal plate secured to the casing and core, to cover the exposed face of the latter, the inner face of said plate being provided with seats into which said fasteners are adapted to project.

5. A fence-post comprising, in combination, a hollow metal casing having its front face open, a non-metallic core fitted within the interior of the casing and exposed through the open face thereof, fence-wire fasteners secured to the exposed face of the core, and a metalplate secured to the casing and core, to cover the exposed face of the latter, the inner face of said late being rovided with transverse channe s into whic said fasteners are adapted to project.

6. A fence-post comprising, in combina. tion, a hollow metal casing having its entire front face open and provided at the top and bottom of said face with forwardly-projecting lips, a non-metallic core fitted within the interior of the casing and exposed through the open face thereof, fence-wire fasteners secured to the exposed face of the core, and a metal cover plate disposed directly against said face and secured to the core and casing, the o posite ends of said plate fitting against said ips, the inner face of said plate being provided with seats into which said fasteners are adapted to project.

In testimony whereof, I affix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE H. WARD.

Witnesses:

NEWELL SAPP, H. A; EPPING. 

